More than 3.5 billion people depend on the
ocean for their primary source of food. In 20 years, this number could
double to 7 billion.

Populations of commercially attractive
large fish, such as tuna, cod, swordfish and marlin have declined by as
much as 90 per cent in the past century.

Each year, illegal longline fishing, which
involves lines up to 80 miles long, with thousands of baited hooks, kills
over 300,000 seabirds, including 100,000 albatrosses.

As many as 100 million sharks are killed
each year for their meat and fins, which are used for shark fin soup.
Hunters typically catch the sharks, de-fin them while alive and throw them
back into the ocean where they either drown or bleed to death.

Global by-catch -- unintended destruction
caused by the use of non-selective fishing gear, such as trawl nets,
longlines and gillnets -- amounts to 20 million tons a year.

The annual global by-catch mortality of
small whales, dolphins and porpoises alone is estimated to be more than
300,000 individuals.

Fishing for wild shrimp represents 2 per
cent of global seafood but one-third of total by-catch. The ratio of
by-catch from shrimp fishing ranges from 5:1 in temperate zones to 10:1
and more in the tropics.

Coastlines

The total length of the
world's coastlines is about 315,000 miles, enough to circle the Equator 12
times.

As coastal zones become more and more crowded, the
quality of coastal water will suffer, the wildlife will be displaced, and
the shorelines will erode. 60% of the Pacific and 35% of the Atlantic
Coast shoreline are eroding at a rate of a meter every year.

More than half the world’s population live within a
100 km or 60 miles distance from the coast. This is more than 2.7 billion
people. Rapid urbanization will lead to more coastal mega-cities containing
10 million or more people. By the end of the millennium 13 out of 15 of
the world’s largest cities will be located on or near the coast. Growing
population in coastal areas leads to more marine pollution and
distribution of coastal habitats. Some 6,5 million tons (6,500,000,000
kilo) of litter finds its way into the sea each year. (Close to
one-half of all Americans live in coastal counties).

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Fisheries

The sea
provides the biggest source of wild or domestic protein in the world. Each
year some 70 to 75 million tons of fish are caught in the ocean. Of this
amount around 29 million tons is for human consumption. The global fish
production exceeds that of cattle, sheep, poultry or eggs. Fish can be
produced in two ways: by capture and by aqua culture. The total production
has grown 34% over the last decade.

The largest numbers of fish are
located in the Southern Hemisphere due to the fact that these waters are
not largely exploited by man.

Fifteen out of seventeen of the world's
largest fisheries are so heavily exploited that the reproduction can't
keep up. With the result that many fish populations are decreasing
rapidly.

Species of fish endangered by overfishing are: tuna, salmon,
haddock, halibut, and cod.

In the 19th century, codfish weighing up
to 200 pounds used to be caught. Nowadays, a 40 pound cod is considered a
giant. Reason: overfishing.

Rising Sea Level

The sea level has risen with an average of
4-10 inches (10 to 25 cm) over the past 100 years and scientists expect
this rate to increase. Sea levels will continue rising even if the climate
has stabilized, because the ocean reacts slowly to changes.

10,000
years ago the ocean level was about 330 ft (110 mtr) lower than it is
now.

If all the world's ice melted, the oceans would rise 200 ft (66
mtr).

Volcanic Activity

90% of all volcanic activity on Earth occurs
in the ocean. The largest known concentration of active volcanoes
(approximately 1,133) on the sea floor is located in the South Pacific

Density

The density of ocean water varies. It becomes more
dense as it becomes colder, right down to its freezing point of -1.9
degrees C. (This is unlike fresh water, which is most dense at 4
degrees C, well above its freezing point.)

Water temperature

Under the enormous pressures of the deep
ocean, sea water can reach very high temperatures without boiling. A water
temperature of 400 degrees C has been measured at one hydrothermal
vent.

The average temperature of all ocean water is about 3.5°
C.

Almost all of the deep ocean temperatures are only a little warmer
than freezing (39°F).

Ice

Antarctica has as much ice as the Atlantic
Ocean has water.

10% of the earth's surface is covered with ice.

The Arctic Ocean is the smallest ocean, holding only one percent of the
Earth's seawater. This is still more than 25 times as much water as all
rivers and fresh water lakes.

The average thickness of the Arctic ice
sheet is about 9 to 10 feet, although there are some areas as thick as 65
feet.

In the unlikely event that all the polar ice were to melt, the
sea level all over the world would rise 500 to 600 feet. As a result, 85
to 90% of the Earth's surface would be covered with water as compared to
the current 71%. The U.S. would be split by the Mississippi Sea, which
would connect the Great Lakes with the Gulf of Mexico.

The Arctic
produces 10,000 to 50,000 icebergs annually. The amount produced in the
Antarctic regions is inestimable. Icebergs normally have a four-year
life-span; they begin entering shipping lanes after about three years.

Carbon Dioxide
Absorption

Oceans absorb between 30% and 50% of
the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuel. Carbon dioxide is
transported downwards by plankton. Any change in the temperature of the
ocean water, influences the ability of plankton to take up carbon dioxide.
This has consequences for the ecosystem, because plankton form the base of
the food web.

Reefs

Over
60% of the world's coral reefs are threatened as a result of pollution,
sedimentation and bleaching due to rising water temperatures caused by
global warming. Global Coral Monitoring Network (GCRMN) states that
currently 27% of all coral reef worldwide has disappeared and around
2050 only 30% will be left.

In one year, three times as much rubbish
is dumped into the world's oceans as the weight of fish caught.

A
single quart of
motor oil can contaminate up to 2 million gallons of
drinking water.

Gold

If all the gold suspended in
the world's seawater were mined, each person on Earth could have about 9
pounds of gold.

Oil

Oil is one of the ocean's greatest resources. It gives us heat for our homes, endless consumer products,
and the ability to run the engines of
cars, planes, and boats for
auto transport
all over the world. Nearly one-third of the world's oil comes from
offshore fields in our oceans which, as we've seen can have devastating
effects on our ocean's ecosystems. The transport of ocean oil from the
Arabian Gulf, The North Sea, and the Gulf of Mexico reaches all corners
of the globe on a daily basis. Oil was also borne from the
sea. Millions of years ago, countless marine microscopic plants
(phytoplankton) and animals (zooplankton) lived in the ancient seas as
they do today. As they died, the skeletal remains of these tiny organisms
settled to the sea floor, mixed with mud and silt, and over millions of
years, formed organic-rich sedimentary layers. Other sediments continued
to be deposited and further buried the organic-rich sediment layer to
depths of thousands of feet, compressing the layers into a rock that would
become the source for oil. Over the years, as the depth of the burial
increased, pressure increased, along with the temperature. Under such
conditions, and over long periods of time, the original skeletal remains
of phytoplankton and zooplankton changed, breaking down into simpler
substances called hydrocarbons - compounds of hydrogen and carbon. This
process still continues, although it will be millions of years before the
next batch of oil is done cooking.

Salinity

Some scientists estimate that
the oceans contain as much as 50 quadrillion tons (50 million billion
tons=50,000,000,000,000,000) of dissolved solids. If the salt in the ocean could
be removed and spread evenly over the Earth’s land surface it would form a
layer more than 500 feet (166 m) thick, about the height of a 40-story
office
building.

Arabian Gulf reverse osmosis plants treat
500,000,000 gallons of sea water to obtain 100,000,000 gallons of fresh
water. Daily over 500,000,000 gallons of Seawater must be heated to
extremely high temperatures. Mixed with toxic chemicals the Seawater is
injected under high pressure through a series of membrane filters. Only
100,000,000 gallons of fresh water is generated. The 5:1 ratio of this
highly inefficient process means 400,000,000 gallons of untreated water
are returned to the sea each day. The higher temperature of the discharged
water causes environmental problems. Worse, the super heated brine
discharge has significantly higher levels of total dissolved solids, and
toxic chemicals are mixed in with it. This pollution is usually discharged
back into the sea.